In groups of two use your cellphone camera create the videos of shots and camera movements below.

1. Create the shots and embed the videos into your process journal.
2. For each shot describe what the shot looks like.
3. For each shot describe how it is created.
4. For each shot answer how and why you might use each the techniques to tell a story, create a mood, invoke an emotion, or establish a character.
5. When finished submit a link to the finished assignment on managebac

The Zoom and the Rack Focus will have to be done with the cinema cameras not your cell phone.



SHOTS AND MOVEMENT

Shot: A single piece of film uninterrupted by cuts.
the three main ways to describe shots are:
  • The size of the shot
  • The movement of the shot
  • The height-angle of the shot
  • What is in the shot, or the purpose of the shot
In your storyboards you will use all of these elements to describe shots and movement. In addition utilize the key concept of the Rule of Thirds to compose your shots.
Key Concept The Rule of 3rds:


Shot Sizes:
The size of the shot is determined by the size of the person(or an object roughly the same size as a person) inside of the frame.


Framing.jpg
Extreme wide shot (XWS): the person’s entire body takes up less than ~50%of the shot

Wide shot (WS): the person’s entire body takes up between 50% to almost 100% of the shot

Long shot (LS): the person’s entire body fills up about 100% of the shot

Medium long shot (MLS): we see about 75% of the person (usually from the knees up)

Medium shot (MS): We see about 50% of the person (usually from the waist up)

Medium close-up (MCU): we see about 25% of the person (usually from the chest up)

Close-up(CU): we see a single complete part of the person’s body (usually the head).

Extreme close-up (XCU): we see a detail of the person’s body (the eyes, the mouth, a finger,etc…)


Height-angle:

Normal angle: the camera is usually placed at the same height as the head (more specifically usually the eyes) of the person we are shooting. So we look directly at the person/object
High angle: the camera is placed above the person’s head (or above the object being shot) and is tilted down to frame it. So we are looking down at the person/object
Low angle: the camera is placed below the person’s head (or below the object being shot) and tilted up to frame it. So we are looking up at the person/object
Camera angle.jpg
Shot movements:

Still shot: A shot that does not move

Birds eye view of camera below


Dolly shot.jpg
Track: the camera moves it’s position to the right or left

Pan: The camera stays in place and turns to the right or left

Dolly: the camera moves it’s position in or out

Zoom: the camera stays in place and using the zoom control on the lens you zoom in or out (you need a zoom lens to do this, not all lenses are zoom lenses)

The difference between a Dolly and a Zoom



Rack Focus: shift focus from a foreground object to a background object by turning the the focal ring on a lens.




Camera movement.jpg

Pan: The camera stays in place and turns to the right or left

Crane: the camera moves it’s position up or down

Framing of the Shot:
Establishing Shot: Often a long shot or a series of shots that sets the scene. It is used to establish setting and to show transitions between locations. (Find and example on Youtube and embed in your process journal.)

Two Shot: (TS) A scene between two people shot exclusively from an angle that includes both characters more or less equally. It is used where the interaction between the two characters is important.
Casablanca-Two-Shot.jpg

Over The Shoulder Shot (OS): In a character interaction where the camera catches the shoulder of one of the actors. Also called a Dirty Single
meetfockers5305.jpg




DescribingShots




Theseconceptsandtermsaregenerallyuniversal,althoughspecifically may bedifferentindifferentplacesintheworld.Inotherwordsthe specificsofthedefinitions,orthespecifictermsbeingused,may be different…buttheoverallconceptsarethesame.

Don’tobsesses aboutspecifics(i.e.don’tworryabout“whatifa person fills %99percentoftheframeis thata wideshotora longshot”?).The boundariesbetweenthedifferentshottypesareROUGH,notEXACT.

Whiletherearemanyways tocategorizeandtalkaboutshots thethreemainways to describe shots are:

Thesizeoftheshot
Themovementoftheshot
Theheight-angleoftheshot


Afterbecomingfamiliarwiththeseconcepts,seeifyoucanusethem as youwatchfilms/TVfromnowon.You’rewatchinga TVshowand suddenly realize“oh,that’sa close-up,and thenit dollied outtoa wide-shot”forexample.Seeifyoucannoticeeachshotas youare watching,noticewhatkindofshotitis,usetheconceptsbelowto noticeas muchas youcanaboutit.

Ifyouarenotusedtothis,itcanbedifficultatfirsttonoticeall ofthe shotsas theyhappen…weareusedtounconsciouslytakingthis informationinfroma life-timeoffilm/TVwatching.Whatwewanttodo is toslowlybeawareofthesethingsthatwenevernoticedbefore(but thatDID,nevertheless,haveaneffectonusas viewers).


Wealsowanttofigureoutwhateffectsthesedifferentthingsaboutthe shotshaveonus.

Becomingawareoftheshotsthatweseeandbeingabletonotice specificthingsaboutthem.Practicethisas muchas youcan.



ShotSizes:

external image clip_image002.jpgThesizeoftheshotis determinedby thesizeoftheperson(oranobject roughlythesamesizeas a person)insideoftheframe.































Extremewideshot(XWS):theperson’sentirebody takesupless than
~50%oftheshot.

Wideshot(WS):theperson’sentirebodytakesupbetween50%to almost100%oftheshot.

Longshot(LS):theperson’sentirebodyfills upabout100%oftheshot.

Mediumlongshot(MLS):weseeabout75%oftheperson(usually from thekneesup)

Mediumshot(MS):Weseeabout50%oftheperson(usuallyfromthe waist up)

Mediumclose-up(MCU):weseeabout25%oftheperson(usuallyfrom thechestup).

Close-up(CU):weseea singlecompletepartoftheperson’sbody
(usually thehead).

Extremeclose-up(XCU):weseea detailoftheperson’sbody (the eyes,themouth,a finger,etc…)


Shotmovements:

Iftheshotdoesn’tmove,wesay it’sa “stillshot”.

Ifitdoesmove,itusually doessousingone(ora combination)ofthese movements:

Thefirstdiagramis a bird’seyeviewofa camera.









external image clip_image004.jpg


Thisis a sideviewofa cameramountedona tripodandona crane.
external image clip_image006.jpg



Pan:Thecamerastaysinplaceandturnstotherightorleft.

Tilt:thecamerastaysinplaceandtiltsup ordown.

Zoom:thecamerastaysinplaceandusingthezoomcontrolonthe lensyouzoomin orout(youneeda zoomlens todothis,notall lenses arezoomlenses)




Track:thecameramovesit’spositiontotherightorleft.

Dolly: thecameramovesit’spositionin orout.

Crane:thecameramovesit’spositionup ordown



Noticeintheabovelistthatthefirstthreemovementshappenwiththe camerastayinginthesameplace/location.Inthesecondthree movementsthecameraactuallymovesit’s location.


Height-angle:


external image clip_image008.jpg


Normalangle:thecamerais usuallyplacedatthesameheightas the head(morespecificallyusuallytheeyes)ofthepersonweare shooting.Sowelookdirectlyattheperson/object.

Highangle:thecamerais placedabovetheperson’shead(orabove theobjectbeingshot)andis tilteddowntoframeit.Sowearelooking downattheperson/object.

Lowangle:thecamerais placedbelowtheperson’shead(orbelow theobjectbeingshot)andtilteduptoframeit.Sowearelookingup at theperson/object/